


Nobody Cares About A Luthor

by PyreWrites



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Heavy Drinking, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Lena Luthor Doesn't Know Kara Danvers is Supergirl, SuperCorp, karlena, mentions of virtually everyone else
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-01
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2018-10-26 01:53:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10776984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PyreWrites/pseuds/PyreWrites
Summary: The thoughts that had been plaguing her for weeks swirled around her head. More persistent the more she drank. All the times Kara canceled plans at the last minute. All the times Kara showed up late out of breath and nervous. All the times Kara vanished for hours on end. All the times Kara wouldn't answer her phone. All the times Lena woke up alone to cold sheets where Kara should have been. There was only one logical conclusion Lena reached over and over again.Kara Danvers was cheating on her.





	1. Chapter 1

The wind bit into Lena's skin. She tried to shake off the shiver that overtook her.

_Guess I really have adapted to Southern California. Back in Metropolis this would be considered warm at this time of year._

She almost laughed at the things she was noticing as she took another long drink from the bottle of scotch she had brought from her office. She had emptied the decanter she kept out on display and one of the spare bottles she kept on hand to refill it with, before she decided to come up to the roof of L Corp Tower. She'd had a small stone bench brought up here to create a sitting area when she bought the building over a year ago. Long before she'd had her private balcony built.

The thoughts that had been plaguing her for weeks swirled around her head. More persistent the more she drank. All the times Kara canceled plans at the last minute. All the times Kara showed up late out of breath and nervous. All the times Kara vanished for hours on end. All the times Kara wouldn't answer her phone. All the times Lena woke up alone to cold sheets where Kara should have been. There was only one logical conclusion Lena reached over and over again.

 _She is cheating on you._ Lillian's voice echoed in Lena's ears. _The novelty of fucking a Luthor has obviously worn off._

The words shot directly into her heart. Even before Lex, and later Lillian, had gone off the deep end the Luthor name had a certain ruthless reputation. There was a certain type of person that was drawn to that reputation. The type of person Lena had no interest in. The type of person Lena kept her distance from. The kind of person that would view bedding a Luthor as a conquest.

Lena had learned to keep her guard up from almost the moment boys started showing an interest in her. And again when girls did too. Even when she decided she was ready to start dating, three full years before Lillian came to the same conclusion, she still never let anyone get too close. She never let her feelings go too far. She never let herself _trust_.

Until Kara.

Kara Danvers, who had caught Lena's eye the moment she walked into L Corp the first time. Kara Danvers, who had breezed right past every defense Lena had. Kara Danvers, who had looked past Lena's last name and took Lena at her word time and time again. Kara Danvers, who had been determined to stand by Lena when everyone else in the world, with the exception of a pretty blonde Kryptonian, told her not to. Kara Danvers, who had marched into Lena's office six months ago and in the most adorable awkward Kara way possible had asked Lena out. Kara Danvers, who had been the first person in Lena's entire life that she said yes to without a single doubt in her mind.

Kara Danvers, who was cheating on her.

 _You are a fool if you think she ever really cared about you._ Lillian's voice came again. _She's been using you the whole time._

“Fuck you.” Lena snapped.

 _She just wanted something to brag about._ The same icy tone Lena had heard her whole life. _She fucked a Luthor, then fucked over a Luthor._

“Shut the fuck up.” Lena shouted.

 _Joke's on her isn't it?_ Lena could hear the mocking smile. _You aren't even a Luthor are you. You're a mistake._

“Shut up. Shut up! _SHUT UP!”_ Lena screamed. And continued wordlessly screaming until her throat was raw.

“Lena?” Kara's voice came from behind her.

Lena spun to find the blonde standing nowhere near the roof access door, wearing one of the t-shirts Lena recognized that Kara sleeps in, a pair of sweatpants, and only socks on her feet.

“What are _you_ doing here?” Lena snapped.

Kara was struck momentarily speechless by the venom in her girlfriends voice.

“Jess just called me. She heard you screaming all the way from her desk. She's scared and I don't blame her. What the hell is going on babe?” Kara said.

“What the hell do you care?” Lena spat.

“What?” Kara flinched like she'd been slapped. “I'm your girlfriend. I'm worried about you.”

“Nobody worries about a _Luthor_. Nobody cares about a _Luthor._ I'm just fucking trophy to you. Just a story you'll tell your friends. About how you got to fuck a _Luthor_.” Lena shouted.

“What?” Kara said again. “What are you talking about?”

“I'm talking about _you!_ ” Lena screamed and twisted away from Kara as she stepped forward. “Where are you all the time? Where are you when you cancel on me all the time? Where are you when you show up late? Where are you when I wake up alone when you should be asleep in my arms? _WHERE ARE YOU?_ ”

“I...I...I...I've been trying to figure out how to tell you for so long.” Kara finally managed.

“Then just fucking tell me!” Lena screamed. “After all this time you at least owe me that much. Is there somebody else? Are you cheating on me Kara?”

“Uh...sorta yes and no?” Kara said just loud enough to be heard over the wind.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Lena snapped.

“Lena this isn't easy. I've only ever had to tell two people about this, everyone else in my life that does know already knew. Alex, Eliza, James.” Kara said stepping forward. “It's never been this hard to tell someone because it's never mattered this much before.”

“Of _course_ your sister already knows!” Lena screamed as she twisted away again. But this time her heel caught in the gravel on the roof, her ankle rolled, and she tumbled off the edge of the roof.

 _“LENA!”_ Kara shrieked as she dove after her. In less than a heartbeat Kara had her arms wrapped around her girlfriend. With a burst of speed almost as fast as she had flown to L Corp she headed for her apartment. It wouldn't do for her to be spotted flying around the city out of her suit.

Lena didn't scream as she fell. She did hear Kara scream her name a moment before she found herself staring into blue eyes.

 _Kara what the fuck are you doing?_ Was the first thing that crossed her mind. Followed quickly by tomorrows front page headline.

LUTHOR DIES IN MURDER/SUICIDE WITH GIRLFRIEND

 _Wouldn't be a real Luthor without one last headline grab._ She laughed bitterly at the thought as wind roared in her ears.

When silence suddenly surrounded her Lena was sure that they must have hit the sidewalk. Until she noticed the light surrounding her didn't match what she imagined she would have seen if she was heading in either direction toward the afterlife. She blinked and looked around. She wasn't in heaven or hell. She was in Kara's apartment. Which given her state of mind could have served as the waiting room for hell.

She pulled away from Kara and stumbled over to the window. Looking up she expected to see the underside of the glowing L Corp logo.

“How the fuck did your apartment get into my building?” Lena muttered. As she put her hands on the window frame she realized she was still holding her bottle of scotch. Which she promptly took another drink from.

“Lena. Please come sit down. I need to show you something.” Kara gently pulled Lena back and latched the window behind her.

“Fine.” Lena huffed as she dropped onto the couch, not noticing Kara retreating into her bedroom. The same couch that Lena's drunken brain decided to remind her was the first place she and Kara had ever had sex. They had been so focused on each other they never got around to moving to the bed.

Her eyes wandered to the kitchen where she and Kara had cooked so many meals for each other. Dinners, breakfasts in bed, even Valentines day because Kara had wanted their first to be special. Lena even suffered through Kara learning to bake in that kitchen.

Lena probably had more memories of the two of them in this apartment than she did in her own. She certainly had, until recently, felt far more at home here than she did in her own place. Not that she was overly surprised by that fact. With as much as she worked and got involved in schemes to save herself or the city, her apartment was little more than where she slept and kept her clothes. Nearly all the actual decorations that now adorned her walls and shelves were due to Kara.

The thoughts stabbed at her and she emptied the bottle.

“Lena?” A shaky voice came from Kara's bedroom door. Lena looked up to find Supergirl standing there. But something was wrong with the image in front of her.

Gone was the confident commanding tone of voice. Gone too were the cape, leggings, and boots that finish the outfit. Her bare feet rubbing nervously against one another. Also gone was the hero pose. Her hands were not on her hips, but grasping her elbows as her arms are crossed over her chest pulling her in on herself. It looked like she was cold and trying to keep herself warm. If Lena had been sober she would have recognized everything about the woman standing in front of her screamed fear.

“Perfect.” Lena barked with a bitter laugh. “Kara is fucking Supergirl behind my back. Guess I can't blame her. I'd fuck you too if the situation was different.”

“You already have.” Supergirl muttered under her breath, then chuckled at herself.

“What the fuck is so funny?” Lena snapped, only hearing the chuckle. “Fucking figures. The woman I love is cheating on me with the only other person on earth I can picture spending the rest of my life with.”

 _“Love?”_ Supergirl's head snapped up. “You...you never said that before.”

“And just why the fuck would you expect me to tell _you_ that I'd fallen in love with Kara before I told her?” Lena snarled. “But I guess none of that fucking matters now.”

Supergirl darted over to Lena and dropped to her knees on the floor in front of her. Resting her head on the brunettes knees and staring up at her.

“What? Are you going to fuck me now while Kara watches from the shadows and gets herself off?” Lena snapped. “If it had been anybody else I might have been into it. Get the fuck awa-”

 _“Lena!”_ Supergirl snapped. “Would you please _shut the fuck up_ for one second and let me finish showing you what I brought you here to see?”

Hearing Supergirl, idol of millions if not billions, cursing like an ordinary person left Lena mute with shock.

She watched as the blonde in front of her brushed a ponytail Lena hadn't noticed her hair in before, off her shoulder. Then she plucked up a pair of glasses hanging from the front of her suit and slipped them on. And in that one simple move Lena was looking at her girlfriend staring up at her, with tears in her eyes, from inside a Supergirl suit.

“I am Kara. I am Supergirl. I _am_ the 'somebody else' you were so worried about. I've never cheated on you and I never ever ever will.” The blonde said, her voice shaking nearly as much as Lena's hands. “And if you'll still have me...I love you too.”

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena awoke with no idea when she left the office. Or even how she left the office. All she knew was somehow she had ended up in Kara's apartment. Alone. Again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally posting the morning after. After the reception I got on the first chapter (and thank you for that, I was seriously blown away. Still shocked that anybody reads the crap I write let alone want more of it) I started writing this chapter right away. I had a nice chunk written when SDCC happened. Frankly I was so disgusted by what happened that I nearly deleted the 2 fics I have posted here along with all my WIPs on my computer because I wanted nothing to do with the show anymore (I had already given up watching it after s2 for reasons that have nothing to do with this fic). I obviously stopped writing, and even stopped reading any fics for SG at all. That then got rolled into a truckload of shit happening irl. Jump ahead several months and after a mental recasting of several characters I started reading and eventually working on this again. I have to admit I am more nervous about this chapter than I have been about any piece of fiction I have ever written, so it has been sitting effectively finished for over 2 months now. I've been poking and prodding and tinkering with it the whole time. Adding a few words here, a sentence there, a paragraph or 2 over there trying to sort my shit out. And I am still nervous as hell. So here it is, finally. No more tinkering. Hope it doesn't suck too much.

Lena's first conscious thought was that every demolition crew in all of California was hard at work on the inside of her skull. The pain in her head, however, was nothing compared to the pain in her chest when she rolled over and discovered she was alone. Again.

The sob that escaped her throat was entirely involuntary.

_Dammit Kara. WHY?_

Lena cried silently as she stared across the room. Her eyes fell upon the dresser Lena had helped Kara pick out, after the one Kara had bought at a garage sale when she was getting ready to move to college finally fell apart. That shopping trip had been months before they started dating. It sat next to the dresser Kara had bought for Lena. It had been a surprise for their three month anniversary. Kara had given Lena a drawer in her dresser and made space in the closet as Lena had started going to work directly from Kara's apartment. A single drawer quickly proved to not be nearly enough room as the number of nights Lena spent with Kara increased. Lena hadn't realized their anniversary was coming up, but she did notice they stayed at her place every night for an entire week. It turned out Kara had bought the dresser, stripped it, and had hand painted it with a mural of things Lena loved. It was the first present Lena had ever received that showed the giver actually truly knew her.

Now it just reminded her of how much of her stuff she had to gather up once she broke up with Kara.

She rolled over in a futile effort to turn her back on the painful thoughts, only to end up facing her nightstand, Kara's two month anniversary present to her. She had picked it specifically for the extra deep drawers, so Lena would have plenty of space for the books she devoured on the nights they didn't simply pass out in a tangle of sweaty, exhausted limbs. On average Lena had no less than a dozen books waiting in those drawers. More things she would have to pack.

_How could someone that cares this deeply do something so heartless?_

Lena blinked away a fresh wave of tears. Her eyes finally focused on a bottle of aspirin, two bottles of water, and a piece of paper tucked between them with her name, in Kara's handwriting, on it. She set the paper aside while she swallowed a few pills and drained one of the water bottles.

She wasn't sure she wanted to read it. It was the first time she had woken up to a note in place of a missing Kara. And the fact she didn't remember anything about last night, when she had left the office, _how_ she had left the office, or how she ended up at Kara's did nothing to settle her nerves. All she remembered was anger and alcohol.

She had negotiated against some of the most powerful businessmen in the world. She had gone toe to toe with some of the most fearsome warlords on the planet that expected business to continue as usual after Lex had gone to jail and Lena took over. She had told them all, in no uncertain terms, to go fuck themselves, Luthor Corp was out of the arms business. She had lost count of how many times she had nearly been killed, even since moving to National City. Not a single one of those moments came close to rattling her the way this single sheet of paper in her lap did.

Lena didn't know how long she sat there before her hands finally unfolded the note and she began to read.

 

_**Good morning my green-eyed angel.** _

 

Lena flinched at the phrase she had only ever heard whispered to her on the mornings Kara woke up first and waited for Lena to wake up in her arms.

 

_**With a bit of luck I woke you up with breakfast in bed and you are reading this aloud to make fun of me for being such a sappy hopeless romantic.** _

_**If not then I am sorry I'm not back yet. Alex called and I had something I needed to take care of.** _

_**I'll be back as soon as I can to make you a proper breakfast.** _

_**In the meantime stay in bed and relax. I'm sure you could use the downtime after last night.** _

_**I talked to Jess and told her you are alright. She was worried about you. I told her if I have anything to do with it you'll be taking a personal day. Since you left your phone, keys, purse, and car at the office I'll give you a “lift” if you really need to go in.** _

 

Lena cocked an eyebrow at Kara's use of quotation marks on the word lift. Something tugged at the back of her mind.

 

_**We can talk about everything once I'm home.** _

_**I love you.** _

_**-Kara** _

_**PS – I mean it. Stay in bed Lena. Please.** _

 

_'I love you'? She's never said that to me before. I haven't said it to her yet. Why would she say it in a note if she's cheating on me? And why can I hear her saying it so clearly?_

She shook her head and instantly regretted it. The aspirin hadn't kicked in yet.

Lena gently rolled out of bed and shuffled towards the bathroom, shedding clothes as she went.

When she reached to turn on the shower she found a post-it note.

 

_**Go back to bed Lena.** _

_**I have a feeling once I get home I'll need a nice long hot bath in my girlfriends arms.** _

 

_Probably to get rid of the smell of whoever she is fucking._ Lillian's voice whispered.

“Fuck you.” Lena didn't even recognize the croaking noise that should have been her voice.

She carefully set the note aside on the sink. Part of her, being spurred on by Lillian's voice in her head, wanted to crumple it and throw it away. Another part of her, the part where her heart still beat for Kara's smile, wanted to wait for Kara to get home because nothing seemed to be adding up.

 

By the time Lena stepped out of the shower her headache was the only pain that had decreased. She dried off then wrapped her robe around herself. She gingerly picked up the note from the sink. The dissonance between what Lena was sure of and the tone of Kara's notes still tugged at her. She slipped the note into her pocket, jerking her back reflexively when her fingers brushed something already there. Slowly she reached back in to investigate and found another slip of paper. She pulled it out to find more of Kara's handwriting.

 

_**Now that your stubborn, yet sexy, butt has taken a shower.** _

_**Go. Back. To. Bed.** _

_**I don't want you catching a cold after everything last night.** _

 

She sighed as she slipped both notes into her pocket, still not knowing what 'everything last night' entailed. She pulled open the door and shivered as the colder air outside the bathroom washed over her. A gasp escaped her lips.

_Cold wind bit into her skin. Was I...on the roof?_

She shook her head again, regretting it slightly less than she had before.

_Why the hell would I have gone up to the roof? I haven't been up there since the balcony was finished._

She shuffled over to the dresser Kara had so lovingly decorated for her, her fingers tracing over the images Kara had painted. With a sigh she pulled open a drawer and fished out a pair of sweat pants. Then she dug around for a moment until she found her favorite concert t-shirt.

It was from the very first concert she had ever chosen to go to. Technically it wasn't her first concert, she had been to countless symphonies, operas, and similar events for fundraiser functions growing up. It was expected as a Luthor. But it had been the first one she had gone to of her own volition. It had been her sophomore year of high school. She had been at boarding school and she and her roommate Veronica had snuck out to go to the show. It had been one of the best nights of her life. For a few hours she was free of her life, free of her name, free of her expectations, free of her reputation. She was just a girl in the crowd enjoying the night like everyone else. She had wanted that night to last forever. To the point that she stayed in her seat until long after the roadies had started tearing down the stage, until she and Veronica had been chased out by security guards that obviously just wanted to go home. She had made it to the merchandise table at the last possible moment. They only had a few shirts left and the design she liked only had girls extra small and unisex double extra large left. She settled for the double extra large, not only because the extra small wouldn't fit, but also because she knew it would still fit her for years to come no matter how much she grew. At the time the shirt hung down past her knees. Lena was still a bit annoyed that she was the shortest girl in her class. Thankfully she hit a growth spurt in her senior year and shot up six inches, and much to her delight, filled out quite nicely if she did say so herself. Sneaking back in turned out to be a moot point. They had missed a bed check and had been put on lockdown, the school's version of house arrest, for a month. But Lena didn't care. It had been worth it to feel normal for one night.

It was one of _very_ few times in her life that her last name hadn't been hanging around her neck like a weight. Until Kara...and Supergirl.

From that night on when things got rough and Lena needed a reminder that there were worthwhile things in her life she would dig out that shirt. Today was one of those days.

Lena dropped the robe on the bed and slipped on her shirt. It was still long enough that she could get away with wearing nothing else when she wanted. But today was too cold for that. She took a step to pull on her sweats and yelped when pain blossomed in her ankle. She tumbled backwards onto the bed.

_Falling. She was falling. She saw her reflection flickering by in the windows of the L Corp building. She heard a scream and then...then...Kara was there...falling with her._

_What? That can't be right. I'm not dead. WE aren't dead._

She looked down at her ankle and found it swollen. The feeling of her heel catching on something and her ankle rolling flared in her mind. But nothing she was 'remembering' made any sense.

_This has to be a nightmare coming back to me. That's the only logical explanation. If this was real I should be dead, not hungover in Kara's apartment._

She pulled on her sweats then stayed sprawled on the bed still feeling utterly confused.

 

Lena wasn't sure how long she drifted on the edge of falling back asleep. Her head swam trying to put together the few pieces she had. Still unsure if it was a nightmare or reality.

A thunderclap pulled her fully awake. She jolted up as the windows rattled in their frames.

_Perfect. Weather to match my mood._

She dragged herself off the bed and limped slowly into the living room. She shivered as a cold gust of wind blew in through a window that was hanging open.

_I hope utilities are included in this place for Kara's sake._ Lena mentally grumbled as she made her way to the window, closing and latching it. Her distracted brain failing to register the complete lack of clouds in the sky.

Turning her back on the outside world and steadying herself on the back of the couch Lena made her way to the kitchen, wincing at the pain in her ankle with every step. She had intended to make some coffee until she spotted a pair of post-its. One on a plain white bag she recognized as being from the bakery Kara always got them donuts from. The other on the box of her favorite tea. She plucked the one off the donuts first.

 

_**Don't worry about getting crumbs in the bed. I was planning on doing laundry tonight anyway.** _

_**But don't fill up because I am going to make you a proper breakfast when I get home.** _

_**I also made up and ice pack for your ankle. It's in the freezer. It looked swollen but I didn't see any damage. No torn muscles or broken bones at least. It might be sprained. I asked Alex to drop by after she gets off work to take a look at it.** _

_**She said 20 mins on 20 mins off for the ice pack.** _

 

Lena's eyebrows shot up at Kara's comment about seeing no torn muscles or broken bones.

_What the hell is going on._

Her headache flared again and she set the note aside. She picked up the bag and took a deep sniff of the familiar scent of her favorite donuts. It was possibly the first hint of normality she'd experienced since she woke up. She set them down and picked up the second note.

 

_**I'm sure your throat probably hurts so you should skip the coffee this morning and stick with tea. There's water it the kettle just waiting to be heated up.** _

_**Then go back to bed.** _

 

She glanced up and saw not only the tea kettle waiting on the stove, but also Lena's favorite mug and honey waiting on the counter for her. She smiled despite herself. Nobody had ever looked out for her the way Kara did.

After turning on the stove Lena made her way over to the fridge. She found a ziplock bag filled with ice cubes and a dishtowel waiting for her. She took the ice, towel, and donuts over to the coffee table while she waited for the water to boil. She heard another thunderclap outside. She reached for the remote hoping to check the weather channel to see what the forecast was. She picked it up and found yet another note waiting for her.

 

_**Fine. You win. You aren't going back to bed. At least lay down and curl up on the couch, please.** _

_**Be home as soon as I can.** _

 

Lena glanced behind her to find extra pillows piled up at one end of the couch and and extra comforter draped over the back. She gently shook her head and chuckled.

_She's buttering you up before she drives the knife into your back._ Lillian whispered.

“You know all about stabbing people in the back.” Lena muttered. Then sat in silence, still frustrated that what little she could remember defied reason. She fumed until the whistle of the tea kettle snapped her out of it.

She shuffled over to the stove trying to keep as much weight as possible off her ankle. As she prepared her tea four cracks of thunder rattled the windows in the apartment in rapid succession. Far faster than should have been possible naturally. Lena's head snapped around to the window, finally noticing the sunlight streaming into the room.

She limped quickly back to the couch and flipped the tv on, searching for a news station. The first channel she found covering Breaking News showed an unsteady shot from a helicopter trying to follow the action on the ground. When the camera pulled back for a moment Lena recognized the area only a few blocks from Kara's apartment. She glanced out the window and spotted a pair of helicopters. She looked back at the tv and clicked away trying to find a camera person that seemed to have more than three days experience. She was completely unsurprised to find a news crew on the ground when she found the CatCo News Network. Lena passingly thought that if she was working on the broadcasting side Kara would likely be on the crew standing fifty feet from an alien brawl.

Now that she had a clear view of events Lena saw Supergirl facing off against a vaguely reptilian creature that stood at least twice as tall as her. It was a mottled rusty orange and looked something like a humanoid alligator with horns and boney protrusions along its arms, legs, back, and tail. She watched as the hero sprang forward slamming both fists into the creatures abdomen. The impact rattled the windows in the apartment as she watched it stumble back several steps. It charged at the Girl of Steel. She darted upwards, but at the last moment its hand shot out and caught her by the foot. It swung her around several times building speed until it threw her towards the camera. The hero slammed into the ground leaving a massive crater in her wake. The camera person dove out of the way, dropping their camera and leaving a shot of only rubble with no sign of Supergirl on the screen.

_“KARA!”_ The scream was out of Lena's throat before any thought crossed her mind.

“What?” Lena looked around the apartment in confusion. Then her mind bombarded her with images.

 

_Supergirl standing in Kara's apartment, wearing about half of her outfit, looking absolutely terrified._

 

_When Kara canceled plans at the last minute, and she ended up eating alone while watching the live news coverage of Supergirl fighting some rogue alien._

 

_Screaming into the cold darkness, then turning to find Kara in her pj's and socks, standing on the complete opposite end of the roof from the only door._

 

_When Kara showed up late out of breath and nervous. After she had been watching news highlights of Supergirl stopping a bank robbery._

 

_Falling off the roof only for Kara to dive off after her. The feel of Kara's arms wrapping tightly around her just before “down” shifted from directly above her head until she found her weight fully resting on Kara's body as the wind whipping by them actually increased for several moments._

 

_When Kara didn't answer her phone, moments before the google alert (that Lena totally didn't have set up for “Supergirl”, “Kara Danvers”, and “Lena Luthor's girlfriend”) pinged a breaking news story that Supergirl had just stopped a runway freight train carrying thousands of gallons of toxic materials from derailing and killing untold numbers of people._

 

_Supergirl kneeling in front of her, putting on Kara's glasses._

 

_Waking up alone, and fixing herself breakfast while listening to the news covering Supergirl helping fight an out of control wildfire that had trapped dozens of campers._

 

_“I am Kara. I am Supergirl. I am the 'somebody else' you were so worried about. I've never cheated on you and I never ever ever will. And if you'll still have me...I love you too.”_

 

“Holy shit.” Lena whispered. She looked back at the tv to see Supergirl pulling herself out of the crater. The camera had landed behind the crater but still showed the street. The creature had turned and was walking away from the blonde. Seemingly assuming she was no longer a threat. Lena watched as she looked around until she found the camera.

Lena's jaw fell open as she watched Supergirl mouth the words ' _Don't worry babe. I'm fine.'_ And then wink.

“She...she heard me. Supergirl heard me scream Kara's name and she just said 'I'm fine'.” Lena said, her voice still nearly unrecognizable. “Kara really is Supergirl. My girlfriend is _Supergirl!_ I'M IN LOVE WITH SUPERGIRL!” She screamed into the empty apartment.

When she looked back at the tv Supergirl was giving her the same slightly annoyed look she had seen on Kara's face a thousand times when she discovered they had finished all of their take out. Especially when they ran out of potstickers.

“What?” Lena said to the tv.

_'Shhh the neighbors will hear you.'_ Supergirl mouthed.

“Sorry.” Lena blushed. She watched as Supergirl smiled at her.

_'I love you too. Now drink your tea and ice your ankle.'_ Supergirl mouthed before springing back into the air.

Lena flopped back down onto the couch in mild shock and watched her girlfriend go back to fighting a 12 foot tall alien alligator. She flinched slightly at each impact regardless of whether Kara was being hit or doing the hitting. On one particularly solid punch Kara landed Lena flinched and the pain in her ankle flared. She finally retrieved the ice pack and her tea then settled back into the pile of pillows Kara had left for her. Her first long sip of tea felt like liquid heaven to her raw throat. The moan that slipped from her lips was absolutely pornographic and she giggled when she saw Kara's head twitch momentarily in her direction on the tv camera.

“Sorry.” She called. “The tea just feels really good on my throat. I'll try to keep it down.”

On the tv Lena watched Kara shake her head and her shoulders twitch like they always did when she was trying not to laugh. Lena smiled as she continued to sip her tea.

She had watched Supergirl fight before, both on tv and in person, but never this closely. Never with this much focus. Never before had she been watching her _girlfriend_ fight. This time she studied, she analyzed, she deconstructed. Searching for patterns of attack, searching for weakness, searching for _something_. And then she saw it.

The creature had swatted at Kara sending her darting out of range before swooping back in for another shot. Lena saw the creature line up for what looked like an uppercut, a punch Kara would likely drop to the ground to avoid, but then it hesitated. As if it was waiting for Kara to see what it had in store for her. Kara came back into range and saw the creatures stance. It began to swing and as expected Kara dropped to the ground. The uppercut turned into a modified hook that the creature overextended. When it began to pivot on it's leading foot everything clicked in Lena's mind.

“No no no! It's a trick!” She shouted at the tv.

Sophomore year of high school Lena had taken Martial Arts to satisfy her Phys Ed requirement. She had enjoyed the class and had wanted to continue on, until Lillian had seen it on her report card and pitched an unholy fit. Lillian considered hand to hand combat beneath the Luthors. Besides, that's what they paid body guards for. And even though it was never said Lena knew that Lillian would insist that if her children (well, only Lex to be perfectly honest) wanted to learn to fight Lillian would hire the very best teachers in the world to do it, not some lowly gym teacher. Even if said gym teacher was working at the most prestigious boarding school on the planet.

Lena had been sparring with an especially obnoxious boy in her class that had been unsuccessfully flirting with her all year. She had definitively beaten him the last two times they had faced off. Which made his confidence somewhat odd. They traded blows and points throughout the match until he threw an especially lazy and sloppy backhand. Lena easily blocked it and smirked at him as she decided how she was going to finish him off. Next thing she knew she was sprawled on her back and he had scored the winning point. While she had been focused on the punch she had blocked she completely missed the follow up leg sweep that caught her from behind. She had been internally humiliated, but it was a valuable lesson.

Lena watched as the creatures tail started to swing around towards Kara's back, she was focused on the punch and probably deciding where to aim her own on the creatures back. Lena saw only one way Kara wasn't going to be sent flying into a building from the impact of the creatures tail, quite possibly unconscious.

_“DUCK!”_ Lena screamed.

Kara dropped flat to the ground without a seconds hesitation and the creatures tail whipped harmlessly over her. She popped back up and glanced over her shoulder at the camera with a grin.

“Grab its tail!” Lena shouted. Kara obliged. “Go between its legs then fly up! Take it off its feet!”

Kara followed Lena's instructions flawlessly. The creature fell backwards and its head crashed into the pavement with an audible crack. The impact of its body shook the sofa and the entire apartment. The creature reached up for a moment before its arm fell limp at its side and it went still. After a few moments Lena could see it's chest rising and falling, it was still alive, but unconscious. Lena watched as Kara unwound several yards of cable from the back of a city works truck that had been abandoned on the street and hogtied the creature. Then a short burst of heat vision to melt the knot she tied for good measure. Kara's eyes found the camera again and she mouthed _Thanks for the assist babe. Be home soon._ Then she picked up the creature and flew away.

The news coverage quickly shifted to recapping the fight and Lena collapsed back onto her pillows.

_Did that really just happen?_ Lena thought as she went back to her tea and icing her ankle.

After a few minutes of staring at the tv in a daze exhaustion washed over her, like she had been the one in the fight instead of Kara, as the adrenaline of the moment wore off. She finished her tea as quickly as she could as her hands started to tremble, then set her mug on the coffee table along with the ice pack. She laid back down and pulled the comforter around herself. She didn't fight as she drifted off to sleep.

 

Lena awoke to the sound of knocking some time later. She rolled her head to look at the door only to hear the knocking become a bit more insistent. It took a few moments for her to wake up enough to realize the knock was coming from the opposite direction to where she was looking. She pulled herself upright on the sofa and found herself staring at Supergirl floating outside the window Lena had closed earlier that morning. The blonde hero smiled shyly at her and waved. It was unmistakably Kara. Lena smiled as she hauled herself to her feet and limped to the window. She saw the look of concern cross Kara's face as she looked down at her foot. Lena unlatched the window and pulled them open.

“Hi honey. I'm home.” Kara chuckled.

“Kara?” Lena asked, still not entirely sure she wasn't dreaming.

“Yeah.” The blonde said as she reached out to cup Lena's cheek. The brunette sighed and leaned into the touch. A smile spread across her lips and Kara stepped into to kiss her. She stopped just short. “Lena?”

“Yes?” Lena whispered.

“Do you still want me to make you breakfast?” Kara smiled.

“In a minute.” Lena chuckled, then closed the distance between them.

 

After Kara carried Lena back to the sofa, refroze the ice pack with a quick blast of her freeze breath, made Lena a fresh cup of tea with the help of her heat vision, and a quick change of clothes later, Kara set about making breakfast for them both.

“You heard me.” Lena finally said, somewhere between a statement and a question, her voice nearly sounding normal again.

“I always hear you.” Kara shot her a smile over her shoulder.

Lena simply raised an eyebrow as she sipped her tea.

“Not in a creepy stalker way. Like I don't eavesdrop on you all the time. I would never invade your privacy like that, not to mention all those board meetings and budget discussions would bore me to tears.” Kara rambled until Lena chuckled. She visibly relaxed at the sound. “It's like when you are at one of those galas you keep dragging me to.”

“Oh you like them and you know it.” Lena stuck out her tongue. Kara giggled.

“No, I like seeing you all dressed up and beautiful like that.” Lena felt herself blush. “Anyway. It's like when everybody it talking around you and it is just background noise. Then you hear a voice you recognize and you can hear the tone of their voice but not what they are saying.” Kara smirked. “I can hear when you are annoyed or upset without hearing what caused it. Did you ever wonder why I always seemed to bring extra donuts with lunch when you had a bad morning? Or had your favorite dinner waiting for you when you got home?”

“When you weren't busy saving the world and...” Lena trailed off. “Anyway.”

Kara's face fell for a moment before she smiled again.

“Remember that deal that fell through last month?” Kara asked as she turned back to the stove for a moment.

“Uh...yeah. When I got home you had some fantastic french take out waiting for me.” Lena said. “I didn't think we had any decent french places in town.”

“We don't.” Kara said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

“Oh really?” Lena said.

“Yeah. I made a special trip after you called and said we weren't going out to celebrate.” Kara smiled.

“To where exactly?” Lena prodded.

“To your favorite restaurant in Paris.” Kara grinned at the look of shock that washed over her girlfriends face. “It was pretty close too. I'd only been back about five minutes when you got home.”

“Come here for a second.” Lena said after several moments.

Kara darted over only to be pulled into a kiss.

“I don't deserve you.” Lena whispered once she broke the kiss.

“You're right.” Kara replied. Lena flinched. Kara quickly added. “You deserve so much better.”

“Yesterday I'm pretty sure I would have agreed with you.” Lena said sadly.

“Lee, I'm so so sorry. I should have tol-” Kara was cut off by Lena's stomach growling.

“How 'bout we talk about it after breakfast?” Lena smirked.

Kara's eyes went wide. “Oh Rao! The food!” And before Lena could blink her girlfriend was back at the stove. “Oh thank goodness. It didn't burn.”

“Now that would have been a real tragedy.” Lena chuckled. Kara stuck out her tongue and giggled.

“Thank you, by the way.” Kara said over her shoulder.

“For what?” Lena said.

“Helping with the fight. I'd probably still be out there if it wasn't for you.” Kara smiled. “How did you even see that coming anyway? Are you secretly a superhero too?”

“No I'm not. At least not yet.” Lena laughed. “If I manage to find the specs for Lex's warsuit that got blown up I could probably build myself something that would put that Guardian person to shame.”

“Oh Winn and James would be so annoyed at being out-teched.” Kara said as she flipped a pancake. “Oh shoot!”

“Winn built it and James does the heroing, right?” Lena said. “Is there anyone in your life that isn't a hero?”

“Uuuuhhh I don't think so.” Kara said. “James and Winn do the Guardian thing. And you can't tell anybody you know. _Especially_ not James, Winn, or Alex.”

Lena crossed her heart.

“My cousin, obviously.”

“Obviously.” Lena chuckled.

“Maggie's a cop. Lucy is working at the DOD now. Alex, J'onn, and everybody else at the DEO.” Kara continued.

“So Alex doesn't work for the FBI.” Lena said with a smirk.

“Oh, uh, yeah. Can't tell anybody that either. It's super classified.” Kara said.

“No pun intended?” Lena arched an eyebrow.

“I...yeah.” Kara groaned at herself.

“But I had suspected as much with all the alien related stuff she was always working on.” Lena grinned. “You don't grow up with two of the worlds most famous xenophobes without hearing rumors about the DEO.”

Kara thought for a moment then nodded. “Makes sense.”

“Anybody else?” Lena said.

“Well there's Barry, Iris, Joe, Cisco, Caitlin, Ollie, Felicity, Thea, Diggle, Sara, Ray, Mick, Nate, Amaya, Jax, and Dr. Stein.” Kara rattled off.

“I don't recall seeing them at game night.” Lena said.

“Oh they live on a different earth.” Kara said simply.

“Wait.” Lena sat up. “The multiverse theory is true?”

“Yeah.” Kara winked. “I've been there.”

“Oh that is _so_ not fair _._ ” Lena pouted.

“Knock it off.” Kara said.

“Knock what off?” Lena fluttered her lashes innocently.

“You know I can't resist when you pout at me. It's too adorable.” Kara said. “Do you want to go with me next time?”

“Yes!” Lena nearly jumped up before pain in her ankle kept her seated.

“Have I told you recently how cute you are when you are being a total nerd?” Kara laughed.

“Not recently enough.” Lena grinned.

Kara zipped across the room to plant a light kiss on Lena's lips and whispered, “ _Super_ cute.” Then she zipped back to the stove.

“And you call me a nerd.” Lena stuck out her tongue. “Anybody else on your list of heroes?”

“Just the two biggest ones.” Kara smirked.

“And who might they be, since you already listed your cousin.” Lena said.

“Miss Grant. And you.” Kara smiled at the look of disbelief that washed over Lena's face.

“Bullshit.” Lena said.

“I mean it. Between CatCo and L-Corp the two of you are capable of doing more good for the entire planet on any given day than I do as Supergirl in most months, at least.” Kara said. “Yeah sometimes I save the whole world, like with Fort Rozz or something. But most of the time it's a bank robbery here, a car chase there, a fire over here, the occasional rampaging alien jerk like today.”

Lena just stared.

“Yeah I save a handful of lives doing that stuff. But never on the scale you do.” Kara said. “Luthor Children's hospital probably saves more lives on a daily basis by itself than I do in the cape. And that's just one building. You do more good with L-Corp than I'll probably do in my entire life. If anybody around here is a hero it's you.”

Lena tried to blink away the tears that were threatening to spill down her face.

“Since when is one of your powers knowing exactly the right thing to say?” Lena said, trying to keep her voice steady.

“It's just the truth Lee, you are utterly amazing. And I am _so_ proud of you and everything you've done since you moved here.” Kara smiled at her. “But I'm convinced that one of my powers _has_ to be superhuman luck, because you fell for me.”

“Quite literally from what I've managed to remember.” Lena glared at her ankle.

“ _Managed to remember?_ How drunk were you last night?” Kara gaped at her.

“Very.” Lena muttered.

“What do you remember?” Kara asked over her shoulder. “What happened last night? You kinda passed out pretty much right after I told you.”

Lena sighed heavily.

“I was being an idiot.” Lena finally said.

“I doubt that.” Kara said softly.

“I was. I thought you were cheating on me.” Lena said. “All the times you were off saving the world I thought you were sneaking around behind my back. Badly.”

“I'm sorry.” Kara said as she started setting the table.

“No. I'm the one that should be saying sorry.” Lena said. “I should have had more faith in you. I'm just an insecure mess about my personal life. I've never had a lot of luck dating. The last name brings a whole mess of baggage with it pretty much everywhere. Lillian has been telling me I don't deserve to be happy, that someone like you was too good to be true, that you had been using me and lying to me, and I started to think she was right.”

“Lillian?” Kara's head snapped up.

“Not the real one.” Lena assured her. “After a lifetime of being told I was never going to be as good as Lex, and when I finally started doing better than him in some areas I was told I was showing off, the voice of my self doubts, insecurities, and anxiety started to sound like her.”

“Huh.” Kara said.

“Nobody ever said coping mechanisms had to make sense.” Lena shrugged.

“It kinda does actually.” Kara smiled sadly.

“I guess. Anyway, since the last few weeks have been so busy on the Supergirl front you had to keep canceling on me, or not answering my calls, or showing up late acting nervous and evasive, or I kept waking up alone and not seeing you before I left for work, her voice kept getting louder. Until I was convinced you were cheating on me.” Lena said more to her lap than to Kara. “It felt like for the first time in a really long time I was genuinely happy and it was being ripped away from me. I was heartbroken. I was furious. And after a really bad day at work yesterday I got very, very drunk.”

“You said you were working late, and not in that uber cute 'I'm Lena The Massive Workaholic Luthor' way that let me drop by all the time to check up on you when I was patrolling.” Kara smiled cautiously at her girlfriend.

“I was. I had a call with a company in Japan.” Lena said before smiling shyly. “You know I really like when Supergirl checked in on me like that. There were some nights I stuck around waiting for you to stop by, before I had Kara to come home to at least. I liked that feeling of knowing that between Kara and Supergirl I had people in this city that really cared about me.”

“Ok I have a bit of a confession to make.” Kara said. Then rushed to add, “It's nothing bad! More than half the time I flew by your building on 'patrol' I was going out of my way to see you. And a few of those times I came by to make sure you went home after I had been texting you and I could just tell you were gonna end up staying there all night if I didn't drop by.”

“Oh you little sneak.” Lena laughed.

“I keep telling Alex I can be sneaky, but she never believes me.” Kara huffed. “And I do by the way. Really care about you, I mean.”

“I know you do baby.” Lena smiled. “Did I mention I'm an insecure mess?”

Kara chuckled as she set the last of the food on the table then retrieved the ice pack and put it back in the freezer. When she zipped back to the sofa to scoop Lena up the brunette stopped her.

“Kara, can I ask you something?” Lena said.

“Absolutely anything.” Kara smiled and placed a light kiss on Lena's lips.

“Now that I know, why did you put your glasses back on?” Lena smirked.

Kara pulled her head back and crossed her eyes in an almost cartoon like move to try to look at her glasses.

“Oh.” Kara said as she started to blush lightly. “Force of habit I guess?”

Lena laughed as she gently pulled them off Kara's face then dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose.

“Jeremiah gave them to me not long after I got to Earth.” Kara said as Lena set them on the coffee table. “As my body absorbed the yellow sun radiation my powers came in sporadically. The x-ray vision and super hearing were the first ones. The frames are lined with lead so they blocked the x-rays even when my powers flared up before I learned to control them.”

“Wait. Is that what you're doing when you slide your glasses down and squint at nothing? X-raying something?” Lena said.

“Yeah. Those are the same glasses he gave me. Lead lining and everything.” Kara said as she scooped Lena up in her arms and carried her towards the table.

“How did I never figure that out?” Lena muttered.

“I told you. I'm sneaky.” Kara smirked.

“Sure. Let's go with that instead of your girlfriend is an idiot.” Lena chuckled and kissed Kara before being set down in her chair. She took a bite of the omelet that was waiting for her. “Is there kale in here?”

“Yes. I zipped over to the store and back after Alex called. I wanted to try to apologize for, well, everything.” Kara said between bites. “I never should have let things get to the point of you drunkenly screaming at nothing on the roof. Why did you go up there anyway?”

“I'm not sure. I don't even remember going upstairs.” Lena shrugged. “But I'd guess my dumb drunk ass thought that Supergirl you would be looking for me in my office or on the balcony, not on the roof. And given the huge fangirl crush I have, had, have? Whatever, on Supergirl I think I didn't want to do something stupid in case I was wrong about you cheating on me. And if I had been right, and you were two different people, I didn't want my first time with the Girl of Steel to be a heartbroken, drunken, pity fuck.”

“I think I'm flattered?” Kara chuckled.

“You should be.” Lena smirked. “Not gonna lie. The thought of having the most powerful woman in the world willing to do anything I told her to do, or her telling me what to do to her, still is a huge turn on.”

“Oh really?” Kara raised an eyebrow as she began to blush.

Lena simply smirked as she chewed her food.

“You act like you've never had a celebrity crush before.” Lena finally said. “One of those people that could probably have anybody they choose but you can't help but wonder, what if they picked you?”

“I had one.” Kara said quietly.

“Had?” Lena cocked an eyebrow at the blonde. “What happened?”

“Well I guess you could say I still have it.” Kara said smiling shyly but with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “But is it still considered a crush after they say yes when you ask them out and tell you they love you?”

“Brat.” Lena laughed as she flicked a kale leaf across the table.

“Hey! Watch it!” Kara ducked out of the way. “I'm pretty sure that could be called biological warfare!”

Lena stuck out her tongue and laughed. “I am going to get you to eat healthy even if it kills me.”

“Could we maybe not put that to the test.” Kara smirked, before her face fell. “Seeing you fall off the roof scared the hell out of me. Even being so close that catching you wasn't a problem, for a split second I thought I had lost you.”

“So I really did fall? I was sure that had to be a dream all morning.” Lena said. “Since I'm still alive and all.”

“Yeah you did and it scared me to death.” Kara said. “What else do you remember?”

“There was screaming. Then you in your pjs on my roof. Then I was falling. Then I was here and a certain superhero that looks _a lot_ like my girlfriend told me to 'shut the fuck up' right before she told me she was in love with me.” Lena smirked.

“Well that's most of the highlights” Kara giggled.

“So what did I miss?” Lena raised an eyebrow.

“Well your screaming woke me up. I was halfway to the window when Jess called to tell me what was going on. After she hung up I was probably almost to your building by the time my phone hit the floor.” Kara sat a little straighter with pride at the look of shock on Lena's face at just how fast she could fly. “When I got there...you were so angry Lee. I'm so sorry. I never should have-”

“Kara. Stop.” Lena took her hand and gently rubbed her thumb over the blonde's knuckles.

Kara lifted Lena's hand to her lips placing a surprisingly gentle kiss there.

“I'm still sorry.” Kara whispered looking like a puppy that had just been yelled at. “You screamed at me because you thought I was cheating. I tried to tell you the truth but you were so angry you pulled away from me. Your shoe caught in the gravel and you fell. Oh shoot!”

Kara disappeared in a gust of wind. By the time Lena turned around the bedroom door and the corner window were both swaying open. Lena blinked, having never seen Supergirl, let alone Kara, pull that disappearing act. When she didn't reappear after a few moments Lena turned back to her breakfast and continued eating as she went back to trying to get a handle on the thoughts swirling around her head.

About five minutes laster Lena heard movement behind her. She turned to find Kara in her Supergirl outfit latching the window again. When the hero turned to face Lena she was holding a single high heel, one of the ones Lena had worn to work yesterday. Kara set the shoe down on the coffee table then zipped into her bedroom, appearing a moment later back in her pjs she has been wearing a few minutes earlier. Kara flopped down into her chair and went back to eating.

“You didn't have to do that, darling.” Lena chuckled. “I could have got it when I go into the office. But I do appreciate it not sitting out in the weather until then.”

“It was my fault it got left behind.” Kara shrugged. “But it wouldn't have been out in the weather.”

Lena raised an eyebrow.

“Jess had it down at her desk.” Kara slipped into a pout.

“Is that what took so long?” Lena asked, confused at her girlfriends expression.

“Kinda.” Kara took a large bite of her food and didn't continue speaking.

“Kara. My love. What happened?” Lena smiled slightly at being able to use that new nickname.

“Nothing.” Kara sulked and poked at her food.

“Kara.” Lena said softly.

“I'm not as sneaky as I thought.” Kara huffed.

“What?” Lena didn't even realize she had spoken.

“I flew back to your office to get your shoe. But it wasn't there. So I went downstairs. Jess had it at her desk. She had gone upstairs after all the screaming stopped suddenly to see if you were ok.” Kara deflated even more.

“...And?” Lena gently prodded when Kara didn't go on.

“She asked me to tell you that she had cleared your schedule for today.” Kara crossed her arms over her chest. Lena gestured for her to keep going because she still wasn't sure why Kara was upset. “She asked if I was finally going to tell you the truth after what happened last night. She said she's never seen you happier than since we started dating, up until the last couple of weeks anyway.”

“So?” Lena still wasn't putting the pieces together. Even after the aspirin, a shower, a nap, and half her breakfast she was still somewhat hungover, plus her own thoughts had her distracted.

“I was in my Supergirl outfit. You're dating Kara, not Supergirl.” Kara pouted. “Jess _knows_.”

“Oh.” Lena finally said. “I really am an idiot. Can I use your phone?”

“Uh, yeah, of course.” Kara said as she got up.

“I need to talk to my secretary.” Lena said with a bit of an edge to her voice.

Kara walked back into the room tapping on her phone, pulling up Lena's public office number that would ring through Jess' desk. She handed the phone to Lena, who turned on the speaker and punched call. Jess picked up after two rings.

“L-Corp. Miss Luthor's office.” Came the familiar chipper voice.

“Hello Jess.” Lena said cooly, slipping into her office voice.

“Miss Luthor, hello!” Jess responded. “I hope you are feeling better this morning. I trust Miss Danvers is taking good care of you.”

“Jess.” Lena said letting a hint of ice slip into her voice as she did during her more difficult negotiations.

“Yes Miss Luthor?” Jess responded by slipping into her most professional persona.

“Kara told me.” Lena smiled at the blonde.

“Oh thank goodness.” Jess dropped all pretense at the news. “I have been waiting for _ever_.”

Lena raised an eyebrow at that revelation. Kara hid her face in her hands.

“I trust that you have not shared this information with anyone else.” Lena stated in such a way that it was obvious it was not a question.

“Of course not Miss Luthor. I haven't told anyone in over a year, including yourself I might add, and I have no intention of telling anyone at any time in the future. I consider Kara a friend and I consider any such information to be included in the Non-Disclosure Agreement I signed when I was hired. I understand that now that you and Kara are aware that I am aware of any such information that I will be expected to sign further NDA's with her _other_ employer. But as you both are taking a personal day today I would expect that such matters can be dealt with tomorrow, or when you see fit to return to work.” Jess said. Lena was impressed at her skill at avoiding saying anything that could be overheard or in case the line was tapped. She had greatly improved since she had first started working for Lena directly.

“Thank you Jess.” Lena let out a breath she hadn't been aware she had been holding as the stress melted out of her frame. “Feel free to take the rest of the day off, at full pay.”

“Thank you Miss Luthor.” Jess said.

“Yeah, thanks Jess.” Kara chimed in. “You should come to lunch with us when Lena comes back to work to celebrate.”

“Hi Kara! That sounds great, if it's ok with Miss Luthor.” Jess said, the smile evident in her voice.

“Of course it's ok Jess. It's the least I can do to show my gratitude for your discretion.” Lena said. “I'll see you in the morning.”

“Thank you Miss Luthor. Is there anything else you need me to take care of before I leave today?” Jess said slipping back into secretary mode.

“Nothing that can't wait. Thank you.” Lena said. “Enjoy your day.”

“I will Miss Luthor. You and Kara too.” Jess said before hanging up.

“I'm still annoyed that she figured it out, but Jess really is great.” Kara said as she went back to eating her breakfast.

“Remind me to give her an obscene Christmas bonus this year.” Lena smirked. “I don't deserve you two.”

“Lee, stop.” Kara sighed.

“I mean it. Jess takes care of me almost as much as both sides of you do.” Lena smiled. “She's about the only other person I can think of that looked beyond my last name. Besides a certain blonde almost reporter that gave me the benefit of the doubt even while Clark Kent was giving me the third degree just because of my last name.”

“After all the times Lex tried to kill him I get it. Even if I completely disagree with judging someone by the actions of their family.” Kara said absently as she shoved an entire pancake in her mouth.

“Lex never tried...to...” Lena trailed off. Her and Kara's eyes went wide at the same moment.

“Oh Rao, Clark is gonna kill me.” Kara moaned.

“Clark Kent is...” Lena took a breath to steady herself.

“Yes he is.” Kara said in the moment of silence.

“Your cousin.” Lena finished.

“Oh, uh yeah. That too.” Kara stumbled over the unexpected turn Lena's statement took.

“Don't worry love. His secret is as safe with me as yours.” Lena smiled, as she gingerly stood up and leaned over the table to kiss Kara.

They ate what little was left of the food in relative silence.

 

After they finished eating Kara carried Lena back to the couch, brought her the ice pack for her ankle, and made a fresh cup of tea. Kara then super sped through clearing the table. But she did the dishes at human speed. She had tried to hand wash dishes at super speed, once. After needing an entire change of clothes and a mop she decided it was worth the extra time.

While Lena watched the small display of her girlfriends powers she continued to sort through her thoughts. She was so distracted that she didn't immediately notice that Kara had finished the dishes and had come back and sat down on the other end of the couch. It wasn't until the blonde shifted uneasily that Lena's focus was brought back to the here and now. Kara moved to push her glasses up her nose, a move she always did when she was nervous that Lena thought was incredibly cute, made only cuter by the fact that Kara forgot she wasn't wearing her glasses.

“Where did you go Lee?” Kara asked cautiously.

“Just thinking.” Lena sighed.

“About what?” Kara prodded when Lena didn't continue.

Lena sat for several moments.

“It's because I'm a Luthor isn't it?” Lena whispered. She felt the self-doubt, self-loathing, and distrust that had been etched into her brain by two decades of life as Lilian Luthor's emotional punching bag bubbling up.

_Of course it is. She never trusted you._ Lilian hissed.

“What? No! Not for even a second.” Kara insisted as tears started to well up in her eyes. “I swear to you Lee. I trust you with my life. If there was any kryptonite left at the DEO I'd go get it and let you keep it all if that's what it would take to prove it.”

“Then what was it? You thought I'd be in danger?” Lena said with more bite to her voice than she had intended.

“What?” Kara blinked.

“Like in those comic book movies Alex and Maggie pick on movie nights. When the hero justifies not telling the love interest because if somebody found out their secret identity then the love interest would be in danger.” Lena spat.

“No!” Kara shot back. “I always thought that was stupid reasoning and I got into a weeks long debate with Clark about it before he finally told Lois. You're in danger every day because you're a Luthor. You're in danger every day because of your fairly public friendship with Supergirl. And if somebody found out who Supergirl really is you and everybody in my life would be in danger no matter what. Already happened when Max found out. Happened when some jerk Alex and I went to school with figured it out. At least now that you know you can expect it or I can warn it if it happens again.”

“Max?” Lena narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Maxwell Lord. He planted a video camera on Alex's purse and saw me in here in my suit. Used it to try to blackmail me, after he tried to kill me repeatedly.” Kara grumbled. “He was the one behind that Bizzaro Supergirl knockoff a couple years ago, back before you moved here. Still trying to undo what he did to her.”

“Remind me to start working on a hostile takeover of Lord Tech when I get back to the office.” Lena chuckled ruefully.

Silence fell over the room for a couple minutes.

“So what was it?” Lena finally said, her voice faltering and her body sagged, the full weight of the words she was about to speak crashed down on her. “Why did you lie to me?”

“I...I...I...” Kara tried to start as she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. “I'm not sure how to say it.”

Lena raised an eyebrow.

“I mean it's hard to explain. I don't think there's a word for what I've been feeling in any language on earth, at least none I've learned yet. Maybe German. They seem to have words for oddly specific situations in German.” Kara smiled for just a moment.

Lena chuckled despite herself.

“I'm gonna try, but it might not make sense at first so please just let me ramble until I figure out how to say it.” Kara pleaded.

Lena nodded after a few moments consideration.

“I was sorta scared, but not exactly. And a little selfish, but almost justifiably, maybe?” Kara started.

Lena sat and waited for Kara to continue.

“When I left Krypton I was 13 years old and Kal, Clark, wasn't even a year old yet. My parents tasked me with protecting him. I was supposed to be responsible for him, for raising him, for teaching him about our home, our ways, our history.” Kara's voice shook as she recalled her last moments on her home planet. “But that didn't happen. His pod left our system ahead of mine. When...when Krypton exploded the shockwave threw my pod into this place we called the Phantom Zone. Time doesn't pass there. I was trapped there for over 20 years having nightmares about everything I ever knew being ripped away in a flash of light and a deafening explosion that I shouldn't have been able to hear in space but I swear I did.”

Lena sat up and pulled Kara to her. Even as Supergirl she had never shared this much and Lena didn't blame her at all. Everyone knew that Krypton had exploded, but nobody knew that Supergirl, that Kara, had watched it happen. Had known what was happening, what she was losing. Lena pulled Kara forward until they were laying down with the blonde in her arms quietly crying.

“I still have nightmares about it when there's a thunderstorm. And the 4th of July even worse.” Kara sniffled.

Lena absently made a mental note to start working on noise-cancelling headphones that could cope with superhearing and book the two of them a vacation out of the country for the first week of July every year from now on.

“By the time my pod got free and I finally landed here, Clark had grown up and started the whole hero thing. And just like that I had lost my entire planet and the only thing I had left. Clark didn't need me. He didn't even have room for me in his life. The only person on this entire strange planet like me and he dumped me with strangers. I was lucky that Eliza and Jeremiah had learned some Kryptonian working with Clark over the years because I didn't know a word of English.” Kara snuggled into Lena's side. “Don't get me wrong. I love Alex and Eliza now. But they weren't my family then. They were just somebody my family pawned me off on.”

“That much at least I understand.” Lena said. Her own adoption being a topic of conversation more than once, when Lena thought Kara was a fellow human orphan.

Kara leaned up and pecked Lena on the cheek before she continued.

“While my human identity was being set up I was home schooled until I was fluent in english and enough american pop culture, thanks to Alex, that I should at least sorta fit in. But it was still hard. Everybody looked at me like the poor little orphan girl. Or Alex's weird adopted sister that freaked out over nothing. 'Nothing' being suddenly seeing everybody's skeletons and being able to hear people whispering about me from the other end of the building and not being able to make it stop.” Kara had started trembling at the traumatic memories. “It wasn't until I moved out of Midvale to go to college that I finally felt like people stopped staring at me and seeing something 'else'. I was finally just Kara, just another student. Just another ordinary average person with nothing special about her.”

That was one luxury Lena had never had, until she met Kara.

“Alex has always known. And Eliza. And a couple others. Turned out some other people knew before I met them. Clark told James before he moved here. J'onn knew for years, that's why he recruited Alex into the DEO. Maggie figured it out at some point. I'm pretty sure Miss Grant knows despite everything I've done to convince her I'm 2 different people.” Kara sighed. “I've only actually told 2 people before. You're the third. Alex and Eliza don't do it, but everybody else does. Even if they don't know it. But it was the most obvious with Winn and Lucy.”

“What? What do they do?” Lena asked softly.

“It. It's what I was so afraid of happening if I told you.” Kara looked up at her girlfriend, tears forming in her eyes again. “Lucy I only knew for a few weeks, but Winn I had known for over 2 years. But it happened. It happened all over again.”

Lena let Kara take as much time as she needed.

“The way they looked at me changed. I was 'different' all over again. I didn't want to see that look in your eyes when you looked at me.” Tears had started to roll down Kara's cheeks again. “And the longer it goes on the more it feels like most of them look at me and see Supergirl wearing a Kara costume instead of the other way around. Rao Lee, you mean too much to me. If you ever looked at me like that I'm pretty sure it would destroy me. I think I would rather you walk out on me right now because I lied than ever have you stop seeing _me_.”

Kara broke down sobbing and Lena pulled her close and just let her cry. Lena rubbed circles in her girlfriends back while her mind continued to process everything she had learned today and integrate it with everything she had known for the last almost 2 years. She wasn't sure when she started crying but she didn't fight it. She knew almost exactly how Kara felt. It was one thing she had never dreamed they would have in common.

Lena didn't know how long it was before they stopped crying. She didn't know how long they laid in silence curled up in each others arms afterwards either.

“Do you hate me?” Came a whisper from the blonde woman that had so throughly captured Lena's heart.

Lena took a deep steadying breath.

“Oh Rao you do.” Kara said. Lena could hear the tears in her voice before they started to fall.

“Kara!” Lena pulled her chin up so she could look her girlfriend in the eyes. Then she kissed her. “No. I don't hate you. It hurts like hell that you lied to me and if you _ever_ do it again I will probably never forgive you, but if I had a nickle for every time I wanted to be able to _not_ tell someone my last name just so I wouldn't have to see that look in their eyes my personal net worth would be at least as high as L Corp's.”

Kara giggled despite herself.

“God Kara. With everything that has happened to you, it would have been so easy for you to just give in. For you to turn angry, bitter, and lash out. You could have turned into the monster my mother thinks you are. You...you could have,” Lena's voice caught in her throat as she almost sobbed. “You could have turned out like Lex.”

Kara's mind flashed to her experience with red kryptonite and everything she had been thinking at the time, and shivered. She decided that was a conversation for another time as she pulled Lena closer.

“I've been thinking about things all day. I was even thinking in my dreams when I fell asleep after your fight. Everything that drew me to Supergirl, well almost everything, was Kara. Your kindness, your compassion, your _heart_. I was falling in love with _you_ twice and I didn't even realize it.” Lena rested her forehead against Kara's and smiled down at her. “Without Kara Danvers there is no Supergirl. You are the reason that symbol means something to this city. You are the reason she is a hero. You are the heart behind the crest. Kara will never be the costume Supergirl wears. _Ever_.”

Kara had started crying again, but this time she was smiling.

“No matter what you are wearing, or not,” Lena winked then ducked in for a quick kiss. “Kara will always be who you are. Supergirl is what you can do.”

“I don't deserve you Lena. But if you'll let me I'll spend every day for the rest of my life trying to be the person that does.” Kara said. “I love you so much.”

“Well that could be a bit of a problem.” Lena smirked. “If you spend the rest of your life trying to prove that you deserve me, and I spend the rest of my life trying to prove that I deserve you then we are going to be way too busy to run a multinational corporation or be a superhero.”

Kara laughed as she pulled Lena into a kiss.

 

They had settled into the nest Kara had built on the couch and decided to watch movies for the rest of the afternoon to recuperate from everything they had both been through that day. At one point Lena glanced over at the coffee table and noticed Kara's glasses still sitting there. She picked them up and slipped them on.

“So these little things really block your x-ray vision?” Lena said as she looked at her girlfriend laying next to her.

“Yeah.” Kara said as she looked up. Her eyes went wide and she started to stammer. “You...you s-should probably take those off.”

“Why?” Lena raised an eyebrow.

“Because I know that shirt really means a lot to you.” Kara rushed out.

“And that has what to do with me wearing your glasses?” Lena continued to peer at her girlfriend.

“I never realized just how incredibly sexy you look in glasses and I would really hate to damage your favorite shirt when I start literally tearing your clothes off.” Kara said as she started to blush.

“Oh.” Lena said, then smirked as she pulled her shirt over her head and sent it flying to the far corner of the room. “Problem solved.”

 

* * *

 

A few hours later Alex knocked as she opened Kara's apartment door.

“Hey Kara how is Lena's ank-JESUS FUCKING H CHRIST KARA LOCK YOUR FUCKING DOOR IF YOU ARE GOING TO DO THAT IN THE LIVING ROOM AFTER YOU ASK ME OVER TO CHECK ON YOUR GIRLFRIENDS INJURED ANKLE!” Alex screamed as she slammed the door shut and sprinted down the hall towards the elevator.

Even Lena could hear the steady stream of cursing coming from the street over the sound of Alex's motorcycle engine as she sped away.

 


End file.
